EULAs (end user licensing agreements) and ToS (terms of service) are what happens when the computer / Internet age meets evil IP lawyers. Basically, every webpage, every ISP and even the software in your system is covered by one or more of EULA / ToS.
Most of these agreements have some term or another that pisses me off, but usually the benefit of using the service (like ISP and WoW, ferinstance) outweighs the annoyance? In the case of the WoW ToS, players are enjoined from accepting real-world currency for gameworld gold or items because under that same agreement . . . the character and his gear belongs to Blizzard Entertainment. You cannot sell someone else' property, see . . . .
Okay, I can grok that. Hmmm...I wonder what kind of ToS I can get away with for my D&D game?
Anyway, this brings me to today's annoyance: Facebook, the increasingly popular social networking site. Facebook recently adopted an EULA that basically says "We own every character, every word, every picture you post on Facebook. Forever. And you cannot sue us."
What a bunch of arrogant pricks! Just who the FSCK do they think they are? Our content generates their traffic, which they gladly host, for ad revenue (and FB uses Gmail-type context ad targeting based on what is in your profile or wall -- FB's sooooo loaded with WoW gold ads and over-40 dating site ads on my pages).
I joined FB because my son-in-law wants to share his pictures of the forthcoming grandbaby on teh innerweb. Not only that, FB is increasingly Mac-friendly, which we Mac users love.
However, unless FB soon modifies the "You upload it, it's ours forever." portion of the EULA. then I'm outta there.
Monday, February 16, 2009
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